Rosemarie Trockel at Zurich Kunsthalle

I arrived in cloudy Zurich on Saturday afternoon, checked into the comfy Helvetia Hotel (220 CH francs, or $192, for the night), bought a tram pass and set off in search of the Lowenbrau Brewery district, home to galleries I’ve come to know from the international art fair circuit.

The former brewery was converted to gallery space in 1996 and since it was the weekend before Art Basel, many held openings to welcome international collectors on route to the fair, an hour away by train. My Art Newspaper story on the real estate dramas and developments in the Lowenbrau district found here.

As a reward for all that diligent art looking, a colleague and I popped into the Baur du Lac, the town’s chi chi hotel. I spotted dealer Tim Nye, art adviser Meredith Darrow and Sotheby’s Warren Weitman and Eve Reid. One pricey Bellini was consumed.

I ate very well Saturday night courtesy of Hauser & Wirth who hosted a dinner at the old world  Kronenhalle restaurant in honor of sculptor Berlinde De Bruyckere and painter Djordje Ozbolt. I spotted a hanging Chagall and other unusual restaurant decor. We all dined on some sort of veal smothered in sauce, a local delicacy called “rosti” (Update: a Zurich veteran alerted me that what I ate was called “Kalbfleisch geschnetzelt”. Rosti is potatoes). It was delicious, no matter how one feels about the ethics of consuming very young animals.

On Sunday morning, despite a downpour and no umbrella (and no open shops to acquire an umbrella) I visited the Kreis 4 area where I dodged hookers (yes they are out and ready for business by 11 a.m.) and the persistent rain in pursuit of new art. Those photos (art, no hookers) will be included in next posting.

Here are some of photos from the scene.